Pintle



Dec. 2, 1947. w, B, JOHNSON 2,431,694

.- PINTLE Filed Dec. 9, 1944 3, i 28 25 32 we 33 u "Wfr *la ,9

la A n /7 *4 a A\\\ -10 Zio IN1/mmm Fig 1 w/LL/AMaL/oH/vson ATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 2, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 13 Claims.

ZBO- 33215) (Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as amended April 30, 1928;, 370 0. G. 757) 1 The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates generally to'pintlesand more particularly to towing pintles adapted to engage lunettes.

Heretoiore couplings for attaching a, trailing vehicle to a towing vehicle have comprised a pintle attached to the towing vehicle and having a hook-shaped portion adapted to be engaged by the eye of a lunette attached to the trailer. When towing heavy loads under severe `operating conditions, such as are common during military operations when guns and other heavy equipment must be towed across rough terrain, the friction between the lunette eye and the pintle hook causes objectionable wear upon the pintle and may result in weakening the latter to the point of failurel It is accordingly one of the principal objects of the present invention to overcome the aforementioned difficulty by providing a pintle having a roller pivotally mounted thereon and adapted to be engaged by the lunette to prevent excessive wear due to lateral movement of the lunette.

Another object oi the invention is to provide a roller having a spherical peripheral surface, permitting the lunette to be connected and disconnected at angles of the latter inclined either above or below the center line of the pintel.

Another object of the invention is to provide a pintle having a pivotally mounted roller thereon so shaped as to facilitate the attachment and above or below the center line of the pintle.

A still further object of the invention is` to provide a pintle in which the portion of the body of the pintle in front of the roller is developed into a socket tor provide clearance and control the lunette when operating at extreme angles in a vertical plane of the lunette relative to the pintle.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be made more apparent as this description proceeds, particularly when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which;

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a pintle embodying the invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation, partly broken away and in section, of the construction shown in Figure 1, but showing the pintle closed and in engagement with the lunette;

Figure 3 is a section taken substantially on the plane indicated by the line 3--3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary side elevation, partly in section, of a modication.

Referring now to the constructionrshownY in Figures 1 to 3, inclusive, I0 is a pintle embodying the ypresent invention and having a body II. Extending forwardly from the body Il is a towbarV I2 adapted to be connected to the towing vehicle.

Extending vertically upwardly from the rearward portion of the body II is a cylindrical projection I3, which may be either formed integrally with the body II or may be a separate member mounted thereon. The cylindrical projection I3 forms a stub axle upon which a roller I4 is pivotally mounted. As best seen in Figure 2, the roller l is annular in cross section, and its peripheral surface is spherically shaped. The body I I of the pintle is provided with a machined surface I5 adapted to form a thrust bearing for the lower portion I6 of the annular roller I4. The upper portion of the roller I d is provided with a vrecessed annular groove I'I adapted to receive the peripheral portion of a retaining cap I8, the

latter. secured to the upper portion of the stub axle I3 by means of the screws I9.

The portion of the body I I just forward of the roller I4 is provided with an arcuate upper surface 2B for a purpose to be mentioned later. The body II also has a shoulder 2I` spaced from the roller I4 and forming with a roller and the arcuate surface 20 of the body a socket 22 adapted to receive the eye 23 of the lunette 24.

Co-operating with the body II of the pintle to close the socket 22 and retain the lunette eye in position is a latching member 25 pivotally mounted upon the body I l by means 0f a bolt 25 and nut 21, The latching member 25 is provided with a locking member 28 pivotally mounted upon the latching member 25 by means of the pin 29.

In the closed position of the pintle as shown in Figure 2, the ange 33 of the locking member 28 is seated against the upwardly extending locking flange 3| of the body I I, maintaining the free end 32 of the locking member 25 adjacent the uppery portion of the stub axle I3 and the roller I4, and retaining the lunette eye 23 in the socket 22.

The latching member 25 may be moved to open position as shown in Figure 1 by pressure upon the ear 33 of the locking member 23, thus rocking the latter about the pivot pin 29 and permitting the ange 3l) to be raised above the locking flange 3l of the pintle body. The latching member 25 is then free to be moved to open position.

With the above described construction relative movement in a lateral direction between the lunette and the pintle is permitted without objectionable wear of any of the parts of either the pintle or the lunette since the roller I4 rotates with the pintle eye about the stub axle I3. To decrease friction the outer surface of the axle I3 and the inner surface of the roller I4 should be machined to provide smooth bearing surfaces. To further facilitate rotation of the roller upon the axle, there is provided an annular groove 34 upon the outer periphery of the axle I3 which is adapted to be filled with a suitable lubricant. The lubricant is inserted through the grease fitting 35 and is transmitted through the passage 3S in the body II of the pintle to the annular groove 34.

In addition to preventing excessive wear due to lateral movement of the lunette, the lubricated roller on the pintle is also valuable in preventing the lunette eye from hanging or stickingr in the pintle while turning with a heavy towed load.

It will be noted that the outer peripheral surface 3l of the roller lil is spherical or ball-shaped.

lThis construction has several valuable advantages. It permits the lunette eye to be connected to and disconnected from the pintle at angles of '45 degrees either above or below the pintle centerline. This is not possible with an ordinary type pintle hook of uniform size, requiring the attachment of the lunette eye when the lunette is substantially parallel to the pintle. Another advantage of the ball-shaped roller is in facilitating the connection and centering of the lunette eye upon the pintle.

The arcuate surface 2e is provided upon the body II of the pintle just forward of the roller I4 to provide a bearing surface for the lunette when the latter is positioned at an extreme downward angle relative to the pintle. The lower surface 38 of the latching member 25 is also formed with a bearing surface for engagement by the lunette eye when the latter is positioned at an extreme upward angle with respect to the pintle.

The modification sho-wn in Figure 4 is identical with the construction shown in Figures 1 to 3 inclusive, with the exception of the provision of an annular bushing ai) between the roller I4 and the stub axle I3. This bushing may be formed of a suitable bearing material to facilitate pivotal movement of the roller upon the axle. Other constructions of mounting the roller upon the axle are contemplated, as for example the use of roller bearings.

Although I have shown and described certain embodiments o-f the invention, it will be understood that I do not wish to be limited to the exact construction shown and described, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of my invention as dened in the appended claims,

What I claim is:

l. A pintle for attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, and a member pivotally mounted upon a rearward portion of said body and adapted to be engaged by the lunette, a portion of the external surface of said pivoted member being spherical in shape.

2. A pintle for attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, and a member pivotally mounted upon said body about a substantially vertical portion of said body at the rearward end thereof and adapted to be engaged by the lunette.

3. A pintle for attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, and an annular member pivotally mounted upon a rearward portion of said body and adapted to be engaged by the lunette.

4. A pintle for attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, a stub axle extending substantially vertically from said body at a rearward portion thereof, and an annular member pivotally mounted upon said axle and adapted to be engaged by the lunette.

5. A pintle for attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, said body having a stub axle extending substantially vertically from a rearward portion thereof, an annular member pivotally mounted upon said axle and adapted to be engaged by the lunette, and means for lubricating the bearing surfaces between said axle and said annular member.

6. A pintle fo-r attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, said body having a stub axle extending substantially vertically from a rearward portion thereof, a bushing upon said axle, and an annular member pivotally mounted upon said bushing and adapted to be engaged by the lunette.

'7. A pintle for attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, a stub axle extending substantially vertically from a rearward portion thereof, and an annular member pivotally mounted upon said axle and adapted to be engaged by the lunette, the peripheral surface of said annular member being spherically shaped.

8.` A pintle for attachment to a lunette, comprising a body, a stub axle extending substantially vertically at the rearward portion of said body, and an annular member pivotally mounted upon said axle and adapted to be engaged by the lunette, the portion of said body just forward of said annular member being arcuate in cross section for engagement by the lunette when the latter is inclined with respect the pintle.

9. A pintle for attachment to a lunette having an eye, comprising a body, a roler pivotally mounted upon and rotatable about an upwardly extending portion of said body adjacent the rearward end thereof, said body having a shoulder spaced forwardly from said roller to form with said roller and said body a socket for receiving the eye of said lunette.

10. A pintle for attachment to a lunette having an eye, comprising a body, a roller pivotally mounted upon and rotatable about an upwardly extending portion of said body adjacent the rearward end thereof, a latching member pivotally mounted upon said body, the free endV of said latching member being positioned adjacent said roller when in closed position, and said body having a shoulder spaced forwardly from said roller to form with said roller, said latching member and said body a socket for receiving the eye of said lunette.

11. A pintle for attachment to a lunette having an eye, comprising a body, a cylindrical projection formed integrally With said body and extending upwardly from the rearward end thereof, a roller journalleol on said cylindrical projection, the peripheral surface of said roller being spherically shaped, a cap upon the upper end of said cylindrical projection to retain said roller thereon, a latching member pivotally mounted upon said body, the free end of said latching member being positioned adjacent said roller when in closed position, means for looking said latching member in closed position, and said body having a shoulder spaced forwardly from said ro-ller to form with said roller, said latching member and said body a socket for receiving the eye of said lunette.

12. A pintle for attachment to a lunette having an eye, comprising a body, and a member pivotally mounted upon and about a substantially Vertical portion at the rearward end of said body and adapted to be received within the eye of the 1unette, the upper portion of said pivoted member being smaller in cross-sectional area than the mid portion thereof to facilitate the attachment and centering of the eye of the lunette upon the pintle.

13. A pintle for attachment to a lunette having an eye, comprising a body, and an annular member pivotally mounted upon the rearward portion of said body about a substantially vertical portion thereof and adapted to be received within the eye of the lunette, the external portion of said pivoted member being spherical in shape with its upper portion smaller in diameter than its mid portion to facilitate the attachment and centering of the eye of the lunette upon the pintle.

WILLIAM B. JOHNSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the 1ile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

